We have listed
below some of the more common definitions in respect of employment. Should you
have a query which is not listed please email us at :
admin@claim-link.co.uk and we will
respond to you.
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| Acknowledgement of
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Should the Defendant decide to
defend a claim they must respond accordingly to the court. A response pack is
included with the Claim Form (N1) which the Defendant can use to indicate that
they will be filing a defence. The Defendant must file the Defence within 28
days otherwise the Claimant can obtain Judgment in Default.
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The court require a fee when a
hearing date is allocated. For claims in excess of £1,500.00 the fee is
£100.00. This is explained on our costs page.
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If a claim is defended an
Allocation Questionnaire (AQ) must be completed by both the Claimant and
Defendant. The AQ must be completed and returned to the court by a specific
date - about 14 days from receipt - and the fee included if appropriate. The
main purpose of the AQ is to provide the court with adequate information to
assign the claim to the most appropriate track and to enable the judge to make
any directions if required.
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The sum of money which the
court decides you should receive. This can include interest, court fee,
traveling expenses etc.
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The subject of court
proceedings i.e. a claim for money owed to the Claimant.
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Called the N1 form this is the
means whereby the Claimant can commence the court proceedings. A copy of the N1
is forwarded to the Defendant by the court together with a response pack for
the Defendant to either admit or defend the claim.
The N1 should
contain adequate Particulars of Claim in order for the court and the Defendant
to fully understand the substance of the Claimant's claim.
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The person making the claim -
previously called the Plaintiff.
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A local court designated for
civil proceedings and regulated by H M Court Service.
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A bailiff employed by the court
(as opposed to a private bailiff) and authorised to collect goods and money in
accordance with court orders. The court bailiff will also carry out property
repossession (evictions).
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A higher court than the county
court. The Crown Court carries out criminal proceedings and significant Civil
proceedings.
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When a Defendant disputes a
claim they forward a Defence to the court. The Defendant must respond to the
court within 21 days indicating that they intend to defend and then file the
Defence within a further 28 days.
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The Defendant is a person or
entity from whom the Claimant requires a financial settlement or other
remedy.
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During the course of the Claim
the District Judge will from time to time serve Directions on the Claimant
and/or the Defendant. These Directions are essentially instructions and must be
complied with.
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The District Judge is local to
the court and was previously known as a Stipendiary Magistrate. Small Claims
are heard by a District Judge only and they normally make a decision on the day
of the hearing. In a small percentage of claims the judgment may be set aside
while the District Judge considers the documents and evidence - the judgment
then follows in writing.
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After obtaining a Judgment the
Defendant may not comply with the court order and the Claimant may need to
enforce the judgment. The methods of enforcement are explained on our web page
at Enforcing Judgments.
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There is no substitute for good
evidence. Although a lot can be verbal, written evidence which corroborates the
verbal evidence is advisable. It is OK to provide a witness statement but
backing it up with good written evidence is certainly preferable.
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The Fast Track is for claims of
£5,000.00 to claims of £15,000.00.
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This is a court order requiring
one or both parties to effect payment or remedy or to strike out a claim.
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In the event that a Defendant
fails to respond to the N1 Claim Form within the specified time the Claimant is
at liberty to apply to the Court for Judgment in Default which means that
judgment is entered for the full amount of the Claim. No court appearance is
required and once the Judgment is entered the Claimant can commence
enforcement proceedings.
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The Court Mediation Service is
designed to settle Claims without the need for a Court hearing. The service is
operated by volunteer professionals who do not take sides and do not provide
any form of judgment - their job is to try to find a way of settling
disputes.
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Claims in excess of
£15,000.00.
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When a Claim has been filed at
Court a copy of the Claim Form is forwarded to the Defendant. At the same time
a Notice of Issue is forwarded to the Claimant. On the notice is the court's
claim number, the date of issue, the date of service and the final date for the
Defendant to respond.
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The Claim Form must contain
detailed Particulars explaining the background to the claim and how much the
claim is for. There should also be details of dates, times etc and a full
explanation as to how the claimed amount has been calculated.
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A Judgment can be requested
when there is no hearing but the Defendant has failed to respond either to the
Claim Form or to Directions from the court.
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A Judgment can be set aside if
the Court decide that there is good reason to re-visit the Claim. Such a reason
could be accident or illness causing one of the parties to miss a hearing or
non-delivery of essential documents.
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Claims up to
£5,000.00.
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Witness statements, Claim Forms
and other court documents completed by Claimants, Defendants and witnesses
should include a Statement of Truth. This has largely taken the place of the
affidavit.
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This is calculated at 8% per
annum (currently) for each day of the dispute until judgment and
settlement.
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The court can strike out a
claim if there is a failure to file documents on time, directions are ignored
or the Claim is obviously spurious or malicious. Strike out means that the
Claim process ceases but can be re-instated if there is good reason.
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